Top Story with Tom Llamas - Monday, May 4, 2026

Episode Date: May 5, 2026

Tonight's Top Story has the latest breaking news, political headlines, news from overseas and the best NBC News reporting from across the country and around the world Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Breaking news tonight, the shootout near the White House, the Secret Service saying they shot an armed individual as the Vice President's motorcade passed nearby. Gunfire as tourists take cover. A juvenile bystander struck parts of the National Mall locked down. Reporters at the White House told to rush to safety inside. The gunfire just moments after Vice President advances motorcade sped by. Was this related? Also breaking ceasefire in jeopardy. Iran launching drones and missiles at U.S. ships, the U.S. knocking those attacks down and sinking Iranian boats in return. Are we on the brink of an all-out war again?

Shocking video of the United Airlines plane hitting a lamppost that hits a bakery truck, new images of the collision and of the aftermath. The NTSB now investigating why was it flying so low? Deadly cruise ship outbreak. The nightmare scenario at sea as a rare virus spreads. Three dead, others infected. We hear from an American trapped on board. Will any country allow them to leave the ship?

Warehouse Inferno. New video tonight of the moment a mattress business goes up in flames. A worker trying to stop the blaze. What happened next? The confrontation at Cornell, the president of the Ivy League school backing up his car hitting a student who challenged him over school suspensions. We'll show you the video and how he is responding tonight.

And it's the biggest night in fashion. We'll show you stars serving looks on the Met Gallagher red carpet and explain the backlash of the gala's lead sponsor, Jeff Bezos. Plus, the legal saga between actress Blake lively and Justin Beldoni ending with a settlement, what we're learning. Top story starts right now. Good evening, everyone. I'm Ryan Noble's in for Tom tonight, and we are coming on the air with breaking news. A shootout just blocks from the White House. Secret Service officers say they tracked a man acting suspiciously and shot him near the Washington Monument. A child hit in the crossfire. Video just moments before gunfire rang out shows Vice President J.D. Vance's motorcade driving through the area. Tonight, he is unharmed. The incident triggering a massive police response. National Guard members sprinting toward the scene,

emergency vehicles racing through the streets. At the White House, Secret Service officers rushing reporters inside to seek shelter. You can see them running right there. Take a look at this. You can see where the shootout happened in relation to the National Mall and the White House. The shooting comes just nine days after a gunman stormed the White House correspondent's dinner. That man now charged with an attempted assassination of the president. The big question tonight, was this suspect targeting officials?

NBC's Monica Elba is at the scene and leads us off tonight. Tonight, another security scare just blocks from the White House and minutes after Vice President Vance's motorcade had passed through. The target sits on for the shooting off 15 Street and Madison Drive Northwest. U.S. Secret Service investigating an officer involved shooting near the Washington Monument and the National Mall. It began around 3.30 this after. Our plane-closed officers and agents that consistently patrol the outer perimeter of the White House complex identified a suspicious individual that appeared to have a firearm. Uniform Secret Service then confronting the individual. Upon making contact, that individual fled briefly on foot, withdrew a firearm, and fired in the direction of our agents and officers.

They returned fire and engaged. individual was hit. A bystander was also hit and injured. This video showing the Vice President's Motorcade a short time before. And you can hear what could be the gunfire on our White House camera. As agents with long guns rushed people inside. President Trump speaking in the East Room, making no mention of the incident, which comes just nine days after a gunman ran through a security checkpoint allegedly trying to assassinate the president at the White House Correspondence dinner. The Secret Service on this afternoon's shooting. Whether or not it was directed to the president or not, I don't know, but we will find out.

And Monica Elba joins us now live from the scene in Washington. Monica, the suspect is in custody tonight? The suspect is in custody. That's right, Ryan. And he was taken to a local hospital, but we don't know much beyond that right now. And there's still a lot of questions about exactly how this happened. It does appear that this individual was acting suspicious. according to authorities closer to the White House and then made his way down closer to where

we are here at the scene where some of those shots were fired. But again, it's unclear how many shots and exactly how that all happened, what the sequencing was. But as for that bystander that you mentioned and that we talked about, we have learned that that is a juvenile who does not have life-threatening injuries, but it does appear the juvenile was also transported to the hospital. As for the White House and the Vice President's team for now, Ryan, they have not commented, and the President, when he appeared at the White House and made those comments earlier today, didn't talk about this incident, and it was unclear whether he had been briefed on what had just occurred at that point in time. Ryan.

Okay. Monica Elba, leading us off from a scene of a shooting in the nation's capital. Monica, thank you. Now to our other major headline tonight, renewed attacks in the Middle East threatening to shatter the fragile ceasefire. Iran attacking oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, the U.S. shooting down missiles and drones. Garrett Hake is tracking the latest developments tonight. Tonight, Iran launching new attacks on commercial oil tankers and its Arab neighbors, the fragile Middle East ceasefire under strain. With Iran also firing drones and missiles and using small boats to attempt to strike U.S. ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Sentcom's commander says the projectiles were shot down and boats sunk by American attack helicopters.

We have defeated each and every one of those threats through the clinical application of defensive munitions. The American naval vessels coming under fire as they attempted to protect commercial ships passing through the strait, part of President Trump's newly announced Project Freedom. Today, Sencom saying two U.S. flag vessels successfully traveled through the strait. The United States has assumed the risk for the international community to open the strait. With President Trump now saying if Iran tries to target U.S. ships, they'll be, quote, blown off the face of the earth. All as the Iranian regime is also targeting the United Arab Emirates. UAE officials condemning what they called, quote, renewed, treacherous Iranian aggression, saying its air defenses shot down incoming Iranian drones and missiles.

Iran lashing out as President Trump's blockade of its ports has been scrutin. squeezing the Iranian economy. I can't let them have a nuclear weapon where you can have problems like nobody would believe, and it's going very well. But President Trump is also facing political and economic pressure, with polling consistently showing a majority of Americans oppose the war, and the conflict driving gas prices up more than 30 cents a gallon in the last week, to a national average of $4.46.

The president insisting that surge is temporary, and that prices will plummet once Iran can no longer block oil tankers from using the strait. There's a lot of energy out there. They have ships all over the world that are loaded up with it. They can't do much with it because they got kidnapped by a pretty evil place, but we're taking care of it. Garrett Hick joins us now from the White House. And Garrett, President Trump's speaking tonight about whether he believes the ceasefire is holding? Yeah, Ryan, in interviews and in posts today, he's been.

been pretty consistently playing down the impact of those Iranian attacks, saying that there was no damage going through the strait. And when asked directly in a radio interview tonight, whether he thought the ceasefire was void, basically said, I'm not going to tell you, which is the kind of answer he sometimes gives before taking action. We'll have to watch that closely. Meantime. The Iran's forward minister is warning the U.S. and the UAE not to take this moment to escalate back, saying, quote, they should be wary of being dragged back into a quagmire. Ryan? All right, Garrett Hake at the White House. Thanks, Garrett, for that. We'll bring in now NBC News, military analyst Colonel Steve Warren to talk more about this.

And let's start with this concept of a ceasefire colonel. Given the strikes that we've seen over the last several hours, is it fair to say that the ceasefire is over? It's not fair to say that yet, I do not believe. Right now we have a violation of the ceasefire. I don't think the ceasefire has collapsed. There was an action and a reaction and a reaction and a counteraction. earlier today in the strait. Ships going through, the Iranians firing, U.S. firing back.

That seems to have ended. The guns have now gone silent. We'll have to wait and see what happens next. All right, let's talk about this process of CENTCOM saying that it stopped Iranian threats against U.S. naval vessels, taking carriers through the Strait of Hormuz. Walk us through exactly what U.S. forces are doing in the straight right? Sure. Right now, they're talking about conducting guiding ships through, as opposed to escorting.

two slightly different operations with guiding. There's a lot of radio communication. There are ships stationed at various strategic locations. There's also air cover. There's also electronic cover. So airborne electronic warfare capabilities, et cetera. They are all talking to those commercial vessels, telling them where to go, but it's not a close-in escort situation. They're at a distance. They're watching. If the Iranians do anything, the Americans can take action. Just how risky is a mission like this to guide, as you say, commercial carriers going forward. Can the U.S. military leaders know for sure that they're going to be able to stop every attack, or is there still quite a bit of risk here?

There's always the possibility of what in the military would call a leaker, so something that gets through, right? There's a lot of threats in that water. There's mines, there's unmanned underwater vehicles. There's unmanned surface vehicles. There's also missiles. There's a lot going on. That's a busy area. There are a lot of threats there. When we stand off and do this guiding mission, it's less risk to the U.S. Navy, a slightly more risk to the commercial vessels. If it becomes an escort mission, the Navy then takes all of the risk. And so if you're one of these commercial vessels or you're someone that's insuring one of these commercial vessels, how confident are you that your vessel can get through unabated?

Well, so far, a South Korean tanker was hit, right? Or a South Korean vessel of some sort was hit. The president talked about that. So not completely clean yet. It will take some time for the U.S. to figure out exactly how to work this. I think the risk level will go down every day as the American Navy gets better, gets practice, figured out exactly what's going on. All right, Colonel, thank you so much for being here. We appreciate it. Thanks.

Now to dramatic new video from multiple angles showing a united flight flying so low it hits a lamppost that then slams into a delivery truck. NBC Stephanie Gosk has more on the investigation and those images tonight. Tonight dramatic dash cam video showing the moment United Flight 169 from Venice comes in too low, clipping a light pole seconds before landing at Newark International Airport. This unsuspecting driver was on the New Jersey Turnpike Sunday making a bakery delivery. You can hear the plane approaching and then the glass shattering. This freeze frame appears to show the wheels of the plane out the driver's window. New Jersey State police say a landing tire and the underside of the plane collided with the pole, which then hit the truck.

The NTSB is trying to determine if the plane hit the truck as well. Holy B. Oh my goodness. Patrick O'Yulu took this video showing the plane just after impact. Did you see all that wind? Oh, my goodness. Are you thinking today that you were a bit lucky? Well, when I speak to, I just say I thank God that I'm alive today. Winds were gusting nearly 40 miles an hour.

The pilots had control of the airplane. It was just that with the gust, they let it get a little bit low. Remarkably, the driver was taken to the hospital with only minor injuries, according to police. United Airlines says the plane landed safely and no one was injured, adding it will conduct a rigorous flight safety investigation into the incident, and the crew has been removed from service as part of the process. Tonight, the truck driver's employer calling the incident a miracle. And Stephanie is at Newark International Airport for us tonight.

Steph, this is so scary. The NTSB, though, is already on the ground there? Yeah, that's right, Ryan. They arrived today, an investigator arrived here. The agency is asking United Airlines for the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder. Those will be essential in this investigation. They're going to look at things like the weather, the pilot's decision.

All of those things are going to be part of this investigation. The preliminary report is expected out in about a month, Ryan. But this incident was so close. You see the wheels in the driver's window, and that shows you just how close this plane was from this being that much more disastrous. And that driver, lucky to be alive today, for sure. Certainly it makes you think twice when you see a plane overhead. Stephanie Goss, thank you for that report.

New tonight, almost 150 people are stranded at sea, including 17 Americans, because of a suspected deadly outbreak on their cruise ship. And now we're hearing from one of those on board. NBC's Camila Bernal has the story. Tonight, a desperate plea from passengers trapped on board a cruise ship. What's happening right now is very real for all of us here. Where a suspected haunts of virus outbreak has left three people dead and another in intensive care. The ship now docked off the coast of Africa has 149 people on board, including at least three.

others who the ship's operator says require medical care. For now, nobody is being allowed off the boat. We're not just headlines. We're people, people with families, with lives, with people waiting for us at home. Haunted virus is usually spread by rodents. It's the same disease that killed Betsy Araikawa, the wife of late actor Gene Hackman. There's a lot of uncertainty, and that's the hardest part. It's unclear if. the passengers on this ship were infected on board or before getting on. And while rare, there is a variant that is transmitted human to human. It's typically found in South America, which is where this cruise ship originated three weeks ago. In the very rare case of human to human transmission, it does require direct contact with human bodily fluids. As the ship's operator

figures out next steps, everyone on board is stuck waiting. And hope, the virus is contained. All we want right now is to feel safe, to have clarity, and to get home. And Camilla joins us now from Los Angeles. Camila, you obviously talked to somebody on board there. Do they have any idea when they might be able to get off the ship? No, Ryan.

And that's really what's frustrating for a lot of these passengers. They're literally stuck there. Right now, the ship says that it's working closely with health officials and local authorities, and the World Health Organization, while they say they're doing testing and sequencing of the virus to figure out what strain this infected passengers have, and the information will likely help them determine the next steps for all of these passengers.

But as you heard there, the Americans and probably everyone on that ship just wanting to go home as soon as possible. Brian? Yeah, quite the nightmare. Camila Bernal, thank you for that. We appreciate it. Let's talk more about this deadly virus now. I want to bring in NBC News medical contributor, Dr. John Torres.

Dr. John, we heard in Camila's report that usually this virus is spread from rodents to humans, but it can be spread person to person. How would we know if that's happening in this case? And Ryan, that's correct. And most of the majority of cases are actually from the rodent. It's its feces and urine that gets dried out and then it gets aerosolized when people start cleaning out cabins or in this case possibly on the cruise ship, gets into the air, the virus gets into the body that way. That human to human transmission is very rare. The only case that have happened have happened what's called the Andres Strain, which is in South America. And it's been very rare occasions. But this cruise ship was in South America. And so there is that connection there. The way we'll find out is, number one, if they can't find any other sources on the ship and the people who got this ended up having close contact with somebody because that's what it requires.

And once they start getting off the ship and getting out into the regular world, then in that case it starts spreading again. Then we might start thinking about human to human cases. that's very rare. It's almost always that rodent to human case that's what we're talking about. And so these passengers have been stuck on this ship for a couple of days now. What's the time between getting infected and then showing symptoms? And would the people who are stuck on board right now be showing symptoms by now if they were infected? You know, that's part of the problem. It's such a long time for that incubation period. One to eight weeks. So it could be up to two months later they start showing symptoms. Once they start showing symptoms, four to ten

days later after the initial symptoms, which are essentially flu-like. They start getting fatigue, fevers, muscle aches. It feels like they have the flu. And then once they get past that, four to ten days later, they start getting more severe symptoms. And that's usually the cough, the shortness of breath, the fluid in the lungs. And the problem with this disease, Ryan, is it has, even though we've been treating this for a couple of decades, we don't have any good treatments, the fatality rate, the mortality rate is still around 40% if it's the pulmonary type of syndrome. And so that's why we're very cautious with it. And officials right now in Cape Verde have stopped the ship from docking.

What's their concern here? Is the virus likely to spread if the infected patients get off the ship? You know, I think the main caution here is they don't know the source of this. They don't know if it's rodents on the ship that have caused this and have left that urine and stool behind. It's aerosolized and has the virus in it. They don't know if there's human and human transmissions. They're just being extra safe. And you have to remember when these ships do dock, if there are rodents on the ship,

they could get off the ship, and if they're carrying that hauntivirus, they could spread it to the area well. So they're just being extra cautious. They want to make sure they find the source of this first and take care of the patients at the same time. And so they're having that balancing act going on right now, Ryan. And of course, this is the second high-profile haunted virus case that we've reported on in the last year or so. The other incident, of course, involving Gene Hackman's wife. Are these cases increasing at all? And if so, what should people be doing to protect themselves? You know, and if you look at the numbers, it does seem like these cases are increasing, especially in certain areas in the southwest part of the U.S. down in South America.

They seem to be increasing, and that seems to go hand in hand with some of the climate changes, the warming of the climate, because the mice get into that area, people interact with the mice, and they get the virus that way. So it does seem like these are accelerating a little bit, especially in certain areas, but they do tend to calm down once the weather gets colder. So we don't know what the future is going to hold, Ryan. Okay, Dr. John Torres, thank you for that update. And we're going to be back at a moment with a major update on the Hollywood legal battle between Blake lively and Justin Beldoni.

What we're learning about the sudden settlement. Plus, the investigation into the deadly palisades fire was the man who allegedly sparked the flames inspired by Luigi Mangione. And the chaotic scene on a college campus, the president of Cornell, accused of hitting students with his car. We'll show you that video. he's responding. That's ahead on Top Story. We're back now with breaking news on a celebrity legal battle that we followed closely here on Top Story. Justin Beldonie and Blake Lively, reaching a settlement in their years-long legal fight over the blockbuster movie, it ends with us. Lively, who starred in and produced the film,

accused Baldoni in 2024 of sexually harassing her during production, and then retaliating after she made a complaint. Beldoni, who directed and co-starred in the film, has very much. vehemently denied those claims. NBC News legal analyst Danny Savalos joins us now to break down this major update. Danny, I don't know if anybody saw this coming as quickly as it came. We don't know how much these two parties have settled for. They've not revealed the details of these terms, but a settlement like this is not an admission of guilt from Beldeni, right? Never. It's not an admission from either side. Otherwise, there's really no point in entering into a settlement. And you talk about how we don't know the terms.

We will likely never know the terms of this if everybody on each side does their job right, which is keep this confidential. And by the way, we don't really know what side exchanged money. It could have been what we call a walk away. It happens all the time, especially in these emotional pieces of litigation. You get right up to the eve of trial. Everyone says, why don't we just shoulder our own legal fees and walk away? And could that be part of the reason that Lively's lawyers in particular made the call not to take this to court? They just didn't think it was worth it? There were many indicators in this case that this was likely never going to make it to trial. Number one, most civil cases do settle. Second, these are sort of non-traditional claims that are kind of creatively drafted. And third, you have individuals, wealthy individuals who are fueling this litigation with their emotions, not necessarily.

financial decisions the way an insurance company might or a municipality defending a lawsuit. And when that happens, often when you get to the eve of trial, it is a coin flip in civil cases because it's essentially 51% is the burden of proof. So you've got to ask yourself, as you're coming up to the eve of trial, do you feel confident enough in a jury to roll the dice and maybe get hit and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in attorney's fees? That's why, virtually all civil cases settle, and usually closer to trial. The legal teams did, though, put on a joint statement about supporting survivors. You're somebody who's been behind the scenes.

What does it look like to put out a joint statement with opposing counsel? Should we read anything into that? Yeah, it usually means a lot of emails back and forth, a lot of red lines, a lot of track changes. If you work with Word, you know what I'm talking about. It's the kind of thing that might take a long time for attorneys to hash out, but it's usually a form of PR statement. And it indicates that they were able to reach an agreement. And the mere fact that they may have tried to go to mediation in the weeks prior and it failed really doesn't mean anything. In many civil cases, people don't get real about settlement, whether they're a giant insurance company or a wealthy individual until they get to the eve of trial when it becomes real as real gets.

All right, Danny Savalos. Thank you for that. We appreciate it. Now to new details in the case against the Palisades wildfire suspect. Prosecutors alleging the man accused of sparking that fire was fixated on the alleged CEO killer Luigi Mangione. Our Steve Patterson has that story. Tonight, new insight into the man accused of sparking last year's deadly Palisades fire. In Inferno, the reduced neighborhoods to ash and left 12 dead. Court documents revealing the accused arsonist, 30-year-old Jonathan Rindernecht, was fixated on Luigi Mangione.

The man charged with the high-profile murder of a health care CEO in 2024. According to federal filings, Rinderneck's search history included free Luigi Mangione and let's kill all the billionaires. Prosecutors say the suspect, an Uber driver was upset over her failed relationship on New Year's Eve when he ignited the fire. Passengers from that night described him driving erratically, ranting a bit of about Mangione, later telling investigators the violence. That's what happened with that CEO recently. That's what happens when people get desperate. Brenda Neck's attorney maintaining his client

is innocent, telling the Associated Press the alleged motive is a misguided theory. But it's a pattern officials are seeing elsewhere. Just last month, 29-year-old Shemel Abdul-Kareem was charged with torching a massive California warehouse. Authorities say he also compared himself to Mangione and was fueled by anti-capitalist views. There is an extremely disturbing trend where people are resorting to violence to communicate political messages or economic messages. I don't know if this guy saw himself as Luigi, but he's an arsonist. He's a criminal. And Steve Patterson joins us now. Steve, what of the next steps in this case? Yeah, Ryan, Rinderneck was charged with three federal felonies, including arson and destruction of

property. He pleaded not guilty, of course, to all charges. Next are a series of pre-trial hearings scheduled for later this month and jury selection in June. If convicted, he faces up to 45 years in federal prison. Abdul Karim also has a trial ahead and Manjuni himself, of course, coming up. All right. Steve Patterson, thank you for that. Still to come tonight, dramatic new video of the moment a massive fire erupts inside a warehouse. We're live on the ground with the latest. Plus, Dolly Parton opening up about her recent health challenges, what the country star is saying about her condition and what it means for her upcoming show. But first, top story's top moment and a touching surprise homecoming.

Sergeant Tristan van der Schaff returning home to Iowa after a year-long deployment in Kuwait, and his first stop was to his favorite nieces elementary school. Hello. Oh my god. It's okay. He must be the fun uncle, that moment priceless. We thank Sergeant Van der Schaff for his service. for his service. And stay with us. More. Top Story is on the way. We are back now with the

intensifying manhunt in Oklahoma for the suspects behind a mass shooting at a campground that left 23 people injured. Several of those victims hospitalized. The horrifying aftermath captured on camera and a warning some of it is disturbing. NBC's Ryan Chandler is at the scene tonight. Ryan, this all unfolded at an unsanctioned party on the grounds. What do we do? know about the violence? Well, Ryan, first of all, let's make clear. Police say that this was a private altercation with no wider threat to the public. It was among this party that sprung up here at this campground, which is in a quiet neighborhood about 20 minutes outside of Oklahoma City, not the kind of place to host a party, but we're learning about the devastating details

of what happened inside, mostly from those who were there, the party goers. Some of them returned to the scene today, and I got to speak with some of them, and they were. were shocked, confused, came here to find their cars, get more answers. But they say that this started with a fight that escalated into gunfire tragically and then into chaos. They say they heard as many as a dozen gunshots at least. One man told me that he actually had to run into the lake in order to escape the gunfire. But they describe a very harrowing scene as they pull for some of their friends who are seriously injured tonight, Ryan. And do we have any idea how the injured are doing tonight, Ryan?

Unfortunately, Ryan, I wish I had more details from you there. Police are being very careful with the information that they release at this point. I would assume because there are juveniles involved here. This was a very young crowd. The people I spoke to today were 18 and 19 years old. So I think they're being extra sensitive with releasing the kind of information in terms of how people are doing in the hospital tonight. but we do know at least 12 of those people who were injured were hospitalized, 23 total. But listening to how some of these witnesses described their concern for their friends,

I think we're dealing with some very serious injuries tonight, Ryan. Okay, Ryan Chandler, live for us in Oklahoma tonight. We appreciate it. Thank you, Ryan. In New Jersey now, a state of emergency declared over a massive 11 alarm fire that engulfed multiple buildings. New video Justin shows the moment that fire ignited inside a mattress warehouse. The worker noticing the flames and desperately trying to put them out, calling over coworkers as the fire explodes in size.

The fire quickly spreading to multiple buildings. There was thick smoke spewing in the air for more than 24 hours. Area schools closed today with residents urged to stay indoors. Some families forced to evacuate. NBC New York's Chequey Beckford is on the ground in Belleville at a safe distance from the scene. So, Chekie, the video of that moment that the fire starts shows just how quickly it spread. What more do we know about how this started? Yeah, Ryan, that video is about a minute long, and you see from when the fire starts to how it overtakes those workers and the room itself.

Now, sources familiar with the matter tell us the Belville Fire Department is looking into that video to determine if it can offer. validation or verification, excuse me, about how the fire started. Meanwhile, the mayor told us earlier today that the fire may have been started by welding. And in that video, you can see a man who was a metal worker working at the time when he noticed the fire had begun along some mattresses there. Now, Belbow fire officials are not officially confirming that information at this point. But again, sources say they're looking into whether that video can concretely, verify if that's how it started. And you're right now reporting from a community class that had to relocate because their gym was burned down.

Talk to me a little bit about how the community is coming together. And do we have any idea when it's going to be safe for kids to go back to school? Well, yeah, the schools were close today, mainly because much of the areas without power and that situation has begun to resolve throughout the day. So we're told schools will reopen tomorrow. Meanwhile, as you mentioned, this business here, Legacy Boxing Gym, that gym burned down. It was right next to the mattress warehouse where the fire started. So, you know, the owner said basically that there was no way they were going to let this stop them from training

because a number of their fighters have upcoming fights. And for people who are passionate about boxing, this is a way of life for them. So they can't be interrupted with that. So they're going to be training here and at other locations until they're able to figure out where they can find a new home. Meanwhile, the air quality has been a concern because fire has not been fully extinguished. There's still smoke in the immediate surrounding area. So officials are warning people who live near the fire zone to make sure that they keep their windows closed and if they have air purifiers to use them. Okay, Chekie Beckford, live on the scene there for us in Belleville.

Cheki, thank you for that report. Now on to Top Story's news feed. Rudy Giuliani is recovering after being hospitalized with the most. pneumonia. His spokesman says the former New York City mayor is in critical but stable condition, adding that he is now breathing on his own after needing mechanical ventilation. The spokesman noted that Giuliani had been diagnosed with restrictive airway disease following the September 11th attacks. And GameStop is putting in a $56 billion offer to buy eBay. The new sent eBay stock soaring today. GameStop says the move could help it compete with Amazon. The gaming retail, reports some of its stores could become drop-off in shipping locations, might even include live sales broadcasts featuring eBay products. And Dali Parton announcing today she's canceling her Las Vegas residency. In a post on Instagram, the country superstar said that she's responding well to treatment for an unspecified condition,

but that she still needs time to recover. Parton also told fans that she's improving every day and that her doctors have assured her that everything she has is treatable. And the sports world is remembering John Sterling, the legendary radio voice of the New York Yankees who called some of the team's greatest moments on the field. With those iconic home run calls in his signature style, Sterling broadcasts more than 5,600 games for the Yankees

over nearly four decades. He was 87. And now to the Spirit Airlines shutdown, leaving tens of thousands of passengers' strength, and employees without a job. And tonight, the low-cost carrier detailing what ultimately forced them to cease operations. Here's Tom Costello. Grounded and never to fly again as Spirit Airlines, the carrier's planes are tonight parked at

airfields nationwide. Tens of thousands of customers stuck. I have a family of six. A couple thousand dollars just to get home now because they decide not to fly us home. After Spirits, creditors rejected a government bailout. the airline's chief financial officer wrote in a court filing today, there are no longer any viable paths to a restructuring or continued operations. Today, Trump DOT Secretary Sean Duffy blamed President Biden for blocking a proposed merger

with JetBlue in 2024. That merger would have been better for customers, and he still said no to it. But Biden's DOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the war and higher fuel prices were to blame. Spirit's biggest hubs included Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Las Vegas, Detroit, Atlanta, Chicago, and Houston. In Atlantic City, Spirit made up 75% of air service, leaving customers searching for options. 17,000 employees now out of work, many emotional, in front of company headquarters today. I get on the phone with some of my family and friends at Spirit, and, you know, we just start crying. Tonight, many airlines are offering temporary lower fares to stranded spirit customers.

But with fuel prices soaring, summer vacation budgets are under threat. Domestic airfares already up 18% over last year. International up 7.5% with expectations they will continue climbing as this war drags on. Ryan? Okay, Tom, thank you. Tonight, a confrontation on a college campus caught on camera and now under scrutiny. The president of Cornell University accused of backing his car into students after a tense exchange over free speech and discipline on campus. NBC Sam Brock has the video.

Am I allowed to stand here? Ah! He just ran over my f*** foot! This moment of impact, captured by a recent Cornell graduate heard screaming in the video, has questions still swirling tonight. Cornell President Michael Kotlakov had introduced an Israel-Palestine debate series on campus. A group followed him after the event last Friday, asking questions about the university's punishment process and what they say is a lack of independent review in light of dozens of suspensions related to campus protests and the war in Gaza. Are you refusing to talk to your students right now? I'm not refusing to talk. I'm getting, I'm being interrogated in a way that I think is inappropriate.

The confrontation continuing into the parking lot. President Kotlakov started reversing. It seems like his automatic break. system deployed and he kind of quickly accelerated to override that. And that is when he hit Hudson and ran over Aden's foot. Sophia Arnold, a senior at Cornell, was there, as was Aden Viasio, who says his foot was run over. He graduated a few months ago. How are you doing? My foot certainly hurts. My like kind of toes got ran over, so it hurts to put pressure on them walk uphill. Worse than that, I think, is the kind of emotional attacks that we've been getting as a result of the university's response. President Kotlakov says he was accosted by a group of individuals known to Cornell for their past conduct, including a long history of ongoing verbal and online abuse, who he says refused to stop after he answered some questions, adding, they continue to follow me to my car and then surrounded the car, banging on the windows, blocking the car and shouting.

The behavior I experienced is not protest. It is harassment and intimidation. I'm not deflecting. Kotlakov declined to be interviewed for this story. New video released by Cornell from the parking lot, which the university says it zoomed in and brightened, appears to show a group of people surrounding the president's car, but no clear example of anyone banging on the vehicle. Did you see anyone striking the president's car? No, absolutely not. Nobody struck the car.

He even could have called the university police and instead chose to, violently hit to students and leave the scene. Viacio and Arnold say they have never had any history of discipline at Cornell. Is it right for students to block someone in without having the ability to move their car? How would you counter that? I'm actually really glad you asked because it gives us a chance to set the record straight. It wasn't a coordinated effort. We actually were trying to move out of the car as we realized that the conversation was well and over.

No one was seriously injured as questions over the sequence of events. continue to crest. Now Cornell adding further comment telling NBC News that not all of the individuals involved here are current students and explaining that the university will take action as appropriate based on the results of the investigation and in line with its policies. What is not clear, Ryan, is what consequences, if any, the president will face in all of this. Back to you. All right, Sam Brock, thank you for that. Coming up, the deadly ramming overseas, a car plowing into a crowd of people, what happened? And the spectacle in the sky will explain what caused this incredible cloud phenomenon. Stay with us. We're back now with terrifying moments overseas. A van ramming into a crowd

in Germany, killing at least two people. Disturbing videos show the moments bystanders rushed in to help the injured. Here's NBC's Rafe Sanchez. Chaos moments after a driver slammed this white SUV into a crowd in Germany. Bystanders desperate desperately attempting CPR on one of the victims. Tonight, Leipzig authorities calling it a rampage, saying two people were killed and two others severely wounded. The driver arrested at the wheel of the crashed car. Police say he's a 33-year-old German citizen, but his motive for the ramming remains unclear.

We're talking about a violent rampage here. We're working on the assumption this was the act of a lone perpetrator, says this police official. Emergency services swarming the scene. But authorities say there's no further danger to the public. Germany, the site of several alarming vehicle attacks. In 2016, a driver plowing this truck through a Christmas market in an ISIS attack that killed 12 people. And four more incidents in just the last two years. Chilling video shows a driver slamming this vehicle into a crowd at another Christmas market in Magdeborg in 2024. Six people were killed, more than 300 injured.

The attacker, a refugee from Saudi Arabia, with anti-Muslim views. And last year, two deadly attacks in rapid succession, the first in Munich in February. And two weeks later, another in the city of Manaheim. A grim and deadly pattern, tonight leaving Germany on edge. And Germany has very strict privacy laws, which means authorities often don't release a lot of details about suspects. So it could be some time before we learn about the motive here. In previous car ramming attacks, we have seen a really wide range of motivations from Islamist, jihadist terrorism to far-right extremism, and in some cases just very, very severe mental health issues.

Ryan. Ralph Sanchez, thank you for that. Turning now to Top Story's Global Watch, starting in southeastern Brazil. with dramatic video of a deadly plane crash. Here you can see the small plane flying low before hitting a building. Local fire officials say the pilot and the co-pilot were killed and that three other passengers were rushed

to the hospital in serious condition. No reports of anyone hurt on the ground. Right now it's unclear what caused the crash. And a deadly incident in Colombia when a monster truck plowed into a crowd of people at an outdoor rally. And we do want to warn you, this video is difficult to watch.

Here you can see the truck appearing to lose control during a stunt, veering off to the side and then slamming into a group of spectators. Local officials say that at least two people died and more than three dozen others were hurt. And a big update tonight on Timmy, that humpback whale that was stranded for weeks off the coast of Germany. We told you last week how he was loaded up in a barge and then carried out to deeper waters. Well, now Timmy has officially been released into the North Sea. Experts were divided over the rescue efforts because of the whale's health and condition, but so far, it appears that he's doing well. When we come back, it's one of the most star-studded events of the year,

some of the biggest names from fashion and film to sports and music, all in New York for the Met Gala. We'll take you there. Back now with new stunning images of a rare weather phenomenon. Take a look at these rainbow clouds making an appearance in Indonesia. The striking scene dazzling onlookers. And of course, there is some science behind it. For more, I want to bring in meteorologist Larissa Abrahu.

Larissa, thank you so much for joining us. How rare is this? And what exactly is happening in the sky? Well, I love that you mentioned that there is a little science behind it because that is true. And how rare is this? It is rare, but it's a type of rare where you have to be there at the right place at the right time, not so much like a once-in-a-lifetime event. So let's go ahead and send you out to that beautiful video because this is definitely a light show, something spectacular

and just downright magical. What you're seeing is an iridescent cloud sometimes called a rainbow cloud. It happens when sunlight hits tiny water particles or ice crystals in a cloud, and those crystals scatter the sun's light. The sunlight then bends into different color, and that process is called diffraction. It's common with high clouds, and in these pictures, you can see the light show the iridescence occurring within those high series clouds and above those towering cumulus clouds. Another little note, a little fun fact that I have to mention is that usually this will also happen when the sun is blocked by a thicker cloud, and that's exactly what's happening in these pictures. And over the weekend, I also saw these images. I posted it on my social media,

and I had so many people ask if what they were seeing was real. Absolutely phenomenal. Yeah, absolutely gorgeous. Larissa, thank you so much for sharing that. We appreciate it. And finally tonight, it is the first Monday in May, which means the biggest night in fashion is here. It is the Met Gala, the top names in music, entertainment, sports, and beyond, all descending on the iconic steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Let's take a live look at the event right now as celebrities continue to make their way through the gala. The theme of this year's exhibit is costume art,

and the dress code is fashion is art. So all those high-profile guests will be showing up in their interpretation of the theme. And of course, the gala committee is star-studded with co-chairs Beyonce, who we haven't seen yet, Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams, and on a wind tour. But it's not without controversy.

Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez, as Bezos, our honorary co-chair. So far we've only seen Lauren. And that's causing some to protest the extravagant event. Just moments ago, security tackling someone to the ground right outside those historic steps. Joining me now to talk all things, Matt Gala is our very own Chloe Malas. Chloe, thank you so much for being here. Obviously, you're surprised that I'm here, not on those steps, but we're just going to have to deal with that. This is such a huge night in the fashion world. So talk to us about the standout so far. I mean, there are so many, And you're really seeing a spectrum here tonight, Ryan.

You're seeing people play it safe. A lot of florals, which I am surprised by, given that the theme is costume art. And it's really about the celebration of body, the physical body over the course of centuries by artists. But I want to talk about Katie Perry, if we can pull up what she was wearing. Her mask, she actually had a mask.

It was a mirror. And it's about the reflection of one's self, the reflection of truth. And it was very much on theme as to what she was wearing tonight, very different from her being a candelabra and a hamburger in the past. I am not joking. Right there you see Lauren Sanchez, one of the co-chairs of the evening. And honestly, something that I was a little bit surprised by, though, I thought we were going to see more risque outfits, Ryan. I thought we were going to see a little bit more skin.

I will say that Kylie Jenner is somebody that has really pushed the envelope tonight in a very, very risque outfit. And I think so far, if I had to pick a favorite, it's none other than the queen of Halloween, Heidi Klum. Heidi Klum literally came as like a statue. I mean, that's really like all I can. Yep, there she is. I mean, I was actually at the Met earlier today. I mean, she literally looks like something that you would see at the moon. met itself. Talk about literally taking the theme, the theme literally, Ryan, okay? Like,

leave it to her. Yeah, it doesn't look very comfortable, though. I can't imagine she's, there's probably only one wear with that outfit. It's art, Ryan. It's not meant to be comfortable, right? Excellent point, excellent point. Now, you mentioned that you were at the exhibit today, and you were talking to us a little bit about the theme. I mean, is everybody sticking to the theme? Is there some sort of penalty if you don't stick to the theme? Ah, you know, I know, I wish it was like a game, right? I mean, that's how it feels. This is the Super Bowl of Fashion Ryan. When I was going through it today, there were these different themes about your age, the voluptuousness of one's body is something that we saw. There was also the disabled body, which is something that was very emotional for

this swimsuit designer named Sonia Vera, who have known for many years, who actually her body was 3D printed for one of the mannequins in a wheelchair. So it was really honoring the body in all of its shapes and sizes and different conditions. So it's really the totality of the body, and that is the celebration tonight. And that is why I am a little bit surprised, right? You can see some pictures there from earlier today. A lot of people were able to get in there.

It is open to the public. Now I did get to go in there early, a press preview. But as you can see, that is like the literal interpretation. That's a Van Gogh painting. And then that is a beaded jacket. you know, paying homage. But, Chloe, before we go quick, what is the actual party? Do they dance? Do they eat dinner?

Like, what happened? No cameras allowed. They eat dinner under the Temple of Dender, okay? This Egyptian, gorgeous, you know, temple. And literally, it is a who's who of Hollywood culture, sports, Ryan. Tickets are $100,000, if you can believe. That better be a good dinner for $100,000. Better be good fish.

Good chicken. Good state. All right, Chloe Malas, thank you so much for that. And thank you so much for joining us for tonight for Top Story. For Tom Yamis, I'm Ryan Nobles in Washington. Stay right there, though. There's more news on the way.